Insiderhttp://www.openthemagazine.com/taxonomy/term/25948/feed
enA Sorry Figurehttp://www.openthemagazine.com/article/insider/a-sorry-figure
<p>Tracy Chapman once sang, ‘<em>Sorry... years gone by and still / Words don’t come easily/ Like sorry, sorry</em>.’ It seems Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal may have been a fan of the American singer. He has been shooting off apology letters by the shovels full to a clutch of people he once publicly derided as corrupt and venal. From Bikram Singh Majithia to Kapil Sibal’s son Amit, to… well, you name him, he had gone on the offensive only to find himself slammed with heavy defamation law suits. But the star of the AAP chief’s apology show, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, is proving to be his real nightmare. Jaitley had filed two cases against Kejriwal, seeking compensation of Rs 20 crore. Desperate feelers on an out-of- court settlement have not brought Kejriwal any relief. It has been made clear Jaitleywill not settle for just an apology letter. Or even a public one addressed to him in a press briefing. Anticipating this, Kejriwal has not only assigned his Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia to approach Jaitley on the subject of a rapprochement— done on the sidelines of GST Council meetings—he has assigned his party’s new Rajya Sabha member, Narain Das Gupta, to soften Jaitley up. As a chartered accountant, Gupta apparently knows Jaitley personally, and this is what Kejriwal has been counting on. So far, though, even this effort to reach out has failed.</p>
<p>Apart from Kejriwal, five others are named in the defamation suit, too: Sanjay Singh, Ashutosh, Raghav Chadda, Kumar Vishwas and Deepak Bajpai. They would all need to be corralled together for a joint ‘sorry’. But this is no longer easy for Kejriwal now, given his faltering authority over some of them. Including, or perhaps especially Sanjay Singh, who is currently believed to be playing footsie with the Congress in an effort to chart his own political course independent of AAP. Kejriwal’s troubles aren’t close to ending anytime soon.</p>
<p><strong>More Canary than Parrot</strong></p>
<p><img alt="More Canary than Parrot" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="b2f61eea-4c9b-452f-846b-fae9b9bedfbf" src="http://www.openthemagazine.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Insider2_3.jpg" />The Central Bureau of Investigations (CBI) may soon be rechristened the Canary Broadcasting Institute. Not too long ago, it gained notoriety as a ‘caged parrot’. That was a stinging taunt that the court used for the investigating agency, whose strings appeared to be in the hands of those in power in New Delhi. The nickname stuck even after the Modi Government assumed charge, with the opposition accusing the new dispensation too of using the CBI like a pet to ‘fix’ its political opponents and critics. However, now, the CBI seems more of a canary than a parrot. Its officials, split into factions, are busy trying to ‘fix’ their rivals within the Bureau by leaking information on sensitive cases—in short, singing like canaries to all and sundry. And this war within comes as comfort for Congress politicians and their wards who were found with their hands in the till.</p>
<p><strong>What Rahul Wants</strong></p>
<p><img alt="What Rahul Wants" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="a3988474-c0ee-45e3-8c0b-a24dc02ce2bd" src="http://www.openthemagazine.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Insider3_3.jpg" />Days after the two-day Plenary Session of the All India Congress Committee (AICC) which began on March 16th in Delhi, party leaders are still playing Treasure Hunt. They have their eyes peeled and ears turned for the new Congress Working Committee (CWC) that their President Rahul Gandhi promised would be reconstituted soon after the session. In right royal preparation for this, this panel comprising senior, decision-making party leaders was dissolved in mid-February, and a steering committee constituted in its place. High drama arose over the question of whether Rahul Gandhi would go in for elections to the CWC or appoint members of his choice. The last time an election was held for it was back in 1997, so why there was any speculation at all is a mystery.</p>
<p>In any case, the Congress statute provides for the election of only 12 of the CWC’s 25 members, the other 13 are nominated. It was no surprise that in a speech at the AICC session that bordered on the farcical, Gandhi took direct potshots at his critics. He went to the extent of accusing them of not being in touch with the pulse of party workers, even promising to ‘demolish’ a supposed wall that stood between Congress leaders and the rest. He received thunderous applause from the audience, especially from the youth, for this statement. But if they thought inner-party democracy was finally coming their way, they were in for a shock. Soon after, an obliging senior leader—Ghulam Nabi Azad—playing his part in the farce, moved a resolution proposing that the Congress president nominate CWC members. This, after he had asked delegates whether there should be an election to the panel, which they dutifully rejected. The Plenary Session that endorsed Gandhi as the party’s top leader is long over, but there is little news of anything being done either way. On current indications, the CWC may finally be reconstituted only after the upcoming Assembly polls in Karnataka. With a General Election due not too long afterwards, it’s not clear what time frame he has in mind to do what he wants to, whatever it may be.</p>
<p><strong>Some Like it Hot</strong></p>
<p><img alt="Some Like it Hot" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="9f78c50c-977d-48ee-a7ee-a9cd337fe491" src="http://www.openthemagazine.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Insider4_3.jpg" />Some politicians are serial sex offenders. They get caught with their pants down, over and over. Sometimes the act is consensual. Sometimes, it’s consensual for a fee. And they cannot always talk their way out of the mess. A renowned legal eagle and Congressman recently went to meet a client at a five-star hotel in Lutyens’ Delhi. They had a good chat, made a good deal. As the client was leaving, the man in question leaned towards him and quietly suggested he arrange for ‘some company’. The client, clearly accustomed to such requests, stepped out. Soon enough, the ‘company’ herself appeared in the politician’s room. A few hours later, when the lady asked to be paid, the man directed her to the client who’d arranged it. At this, the companion created a ruckus in the hotel. Not to be deterred by that episode, the politico was soon spotted at another five-star hotel barely 2 km away from the first, showering unwarranted attention on a lady at the property’s spa. Since then, he’s been barred from entering the premises.</p>
<img src="http://www.openthemagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/public%3A/Insider1_3.jpg?itok=vf6STqhT" /><div>BY: PR Ramesh</div><div>Node Id: 24115</div>Thu, 22 Mar 2018 16:38:42 +0000vijayopen24115 at http://www.openthemagazine.comInhouse Rumble Against Dynastyhttp://www.openthemagazine.com/article/insider/inhouse-rumble-against-dynasty
<p>The Shehzad (Poonawala) versus <em>Shehzada</em> (a routine BJP pejorative for Rahul Gandhi) controversy is not about to die down anytime soon. Bets are on in some quarters on whether Poonawala was instigated by the Old Guard in the Congress party to queer the pitch for the 47-year-old Gandhi. Poonawala, a very vocal voice defending the Congress, its leaders, its vision , on both social media and on prime-time TV debates, shot into the limelight recently when he made public—somewhat surprisingly to many— his discovery that delegates to AICC elections were being “fixed” for Gandhi to win the post of party president. That would’ve been dreary news to most people, but no one expected the Maharashtra Congress secretary to air his discovery quite so loudly or make such a spectacle of his grievances about being snubbed by Rahul Gandhi’s office. This, after he approached them to complain about violations of internal democracy and the perpetuation of dynastic politics in the nomination of candidates for the post of party president. “I’m <em>Shehzad</em>, not a <em>shehzada</em>, they have no place for me. I thought [Rahul Gandhi] had some morality, but his office insulted me,” Poonawala said after Prime Minister Modi made a reference at a poll rally in Gujarat to him and his travails in battling dynastic politics within the Congress. Shehzad Poonawala, though, may not be a lone ranger against dynastic succession in the Grand Old Party. There are many in the party who feel that Mani Shankar Aiyar, the one-time Rajiv Gandhi acolyte who compared it to how Mughal emperors settled the issue of transfer of power, was complicit in stirring up rebellious sentiments.</p>
<p><strong>Taking Keshav Maurya with a Pinch of Salt</strong></p>
<p><img alt="Taking Keshav Maurya with a Pinch of Salt" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="24fa14ee-b68a-43ac-947a-0a2378d84168" src="http://www.openthemagazine.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Insider2_2.jpg" />George Jean Nathan famously said, “I have yet to find a man worth his salt in any direction who did not think of himself first and foremost.” Well, here’s to pickling in salt the out-of-turn ambitions of UP’s Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya. The ex-MP from Phulpur—who was all geared up to be crowned Chief Minister by Prime Minister Modi until Yogi Adityanath pipped him to the post—is familiar with that ingredient. At a function this September, Maurya controversially told officials that they could “take, but only as much salt as you would want in your food. Take a bushel full of salt from people’s tables and the party will punish you.” This was him cautioning officials against corruption. Maurya, it seems, believed that he is the salt of the earth and has been harbouring these delusions of grandeur until recently. First, he tried to occupy a room on the same floor of the Secretariat in Lucknow as the CM, but Yogi Adityanath vetoed the move. He then tried squeezing into every frame as the CM at all important events—the presidential election, the VP election, state functions, you name it. Until the recent civic polls gave him that much-needed reality check. The BJP lost six of the seven wards in the Phulpur Assembly constituency. Now, everyone is taking Maurya’s ambitions with more than just a pinch of salt.</p>
<p><strong>Singing a New Raga</strong></p>
<p>Jagdish Sharma, who routinely puts up posters across town proclaiming ‘Priyanka Lao, Desh Bachao’, is suddenly singing a new RaGa. He has plastered posters all around Akbar Road, this time hailing Rahul Gandhi’s election. The last time the ‘PLDB’ posters came up, before they were given a hasty and quiet funeral, was in the run- up to the UP Assembly elections. There was a desperate surge of hope in the Congress that Priyanka campaigning in UP would put that zing back in the Grand Old Party and be the elixir that neither Rahul Gandhi nor Sheila Dixit, named CM candidate at the time, could be. First, the buzz was that Priyanka would restrict herself to campaigning in the Gandhi family bastions of Raibareli and Amethi. Then, as desperation scaled dizzying heights, that she would campaign state-wide. It was even strategically put out later that she was the key factor behind the party’s suddenly struck camaraderie with the SP and Akhilesh Yadav, and that she could even be elevated to party chief instead of Rahul. Then, all that whooshed out of the window. Priyanka campaigned on Gandhi turf and disappeared into thin air soon after, leaving most Congress workers in UP confused and angry that they had to play second fiddle to the SP—arch political rivals just recently—after their top leaders virtually threw them under the political bus. The PLDB posters were shredded, torn down, painted over, rolled up, the last of them presumably used for lining cupboards and kitchen shelves. Priyanka had left party workers high and dry. Now that Sharma, widely recognised as Robert Vadra’s flunkey, is loudly belting out a new RaGa, the Congress party is hoping that conspiracy theorists will finally zip their lips.</p>
<p><strong>Barack Obama, the Greenback Boogie</strong></p>
<p><img alt="Barack Obama, the Greenback Boogie" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="01290546-97c8-46f6-aab2-28726ce8531c" src="http://www.openthemagazine.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Insider3_2.jpg" />Former US President Barack Obama swung by for the HT Summit in the Capital recently. The event, for which he charged a fee that set the organisers back by a cool $1.5 million (Rs 10 crore), was to act as a pulpit-thumping morality preacher, and lecture India on communal harmony, religious tolerance and not brutalising minorities. The bulk of his expensive address cautioned India against allowing society to get divided on sectarian lines. Guess no one filled him in on centuries of Hindu- bashing by Islamic and Christian minorities (especially the forefathers of his good pals in the UK). “Every person has the right to practise his faith without any persecution, fear or discrimination. India will succeed so long as it is not splintered on religious lines,” Obama said, addressing a gathering at the Siri Fort auditorium in the capital. Aside from that, all Preacher Obama had to do for the buckets of greenbacks he earned that day was to attend a Q&A session with youngsters and shake hands with a hundred guests handpicked by the event’s organisers.</p>
<p><strong>Running for Cover in Gujarat</strong></p>
<p><img alt="Running for Cover in Gujarat" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="d75fe858-6539-4fc7-b298-d8d9651c9849" src="http://www.openthemagazine.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Insider4_2.jpg" />The last day of campaigning for the Assembly polls in Gujarat may be over, but the big BJP bombshell against the Congress, one that’s going to get the latter’s top names from the state scurrying for cover, is yet to come. Last week, the Enforcement Directorate picked up four persons working for Sonia Gandhi’s political secretary and recently re-elected Rajya Sabha MP, Ahmed Patel, for interrogation in the Sterling Biotech case. This case has already taken on a political dimension following the arrest of Gagan Dhawan, a close associate of Patel. But for some unexplained reason, the ED is keeping the interrogation of the four people under wraps. This could have been big fodder for the BJP poll campaign in Gujarat, so the reason why the ED is dragging its feet over the case is a cause for intrigue. Expectations continue to mount that the agency will come out with crucial revelations at some point soon, perhaps even before polling day. Bet there are some Congressmen willing to pay top dollar for a secure bomb shelter now.</p>
<img src="http://www.openthemagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/public%3A/Insider1_2.jpg?itok=wqBXoY4R" /><div>BY: PR Ramesh</div><div>Node Id: 23725</div>Thu, 07 Dec 2017 16:57:38 +0000vijayopen23725 at http://www.openthemagazine.comRahul, Akhilesh and Wild Asseshttp://www.openthemagazine.com/article/insider/rahul-akhilesh-and-wild-asses
<p>Logically speaking, wild asses shouldn’t have dragged SP leader and former UP Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s home state of Gujarat, especially not after Yadav’s infamous “Gujarat <em>ke gadhey</em>” jibe at the BJP’s power duo of Modi and party president Amit Shah, both Gujaratis and key campaigners in the UP Assembly polls. Ostensibly, the reference was to a Gujarat Tourism ad showcasing the state’s elegant native species, the wild ass, in its natural habitat. As things turned out, the BJP swept the state, routing Yadav’s party, and the young leader’s wisecrack will haunt him as he campaigns for the SP in the five constituencies it is contesting in Gujarat, due for polls in December. Among videos going viral is the clip of his wild ass comment, where he claimed that Gujarat was the only state that celebrated donkeys, except that this modified version stars him and his UP-ally Rahul Gandhi as examples. The asinine species at the centre of this trade of insults is famous for its strong hind leg kick, and as the popularity of the video shows, it is the two young scions who must watch out.</p>
<p><strong>Shah takes a call on Himachal</strong></p>
<p><strong><img alt="Shah takes a call on Himachal" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="917bfa9f-a6e8-4d44-ac07-3974c33ba10b" src="http://www.openthemagazine.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Insider2_1.jpg" /></strong></p>
<p>When Amit Shah decided to finally name PK Dhumal as the BJP’s chief ministerial candidate for Himachal Pradesh in October, it wasn’t just because of the popularity of the 73-year-old who had headed the state twice before. “The BJP is going to fight the HP Assembly polls under the leadership of Prem Kumar Dhumal,” Shah had announced at a rally in Kangra, saying he would soon be Chief Minister again. Till that point, the party had kept everyone guessing who its candidate was, and Shah was seen to be leaning towards Union Health Minister JP Nadda, a Himachali favoured by many BJP leaders in Delhi for the post. However, Shah stopped himself from taking any hasty decision. The Congress was spreading rumours across the hill state that Nadda’s ascent in Shimla would mean the end of Thakur rule. Nadda is a Brahmin, a member of a far smaller group. Thakurs comprise a vast chunk of the state’s voters and the Congress whisper campaign was designed to consolidate them behind its Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh. Shah did not want to take the risk of such a phenomenon and Dhumal tweeted his thanks to Shah and Prime Minister Modi: ‘The people of Himachal will elect a new BJP government and we will together chart a new course in development for the state.’</p>
<p><strong>Sex and the Congress</strong></p>
<p>The Congress seems keen on shooting itself in the foot in Karnataka, one of the few states it retains, and handing the advantage to the BJP in next year’s Assembly election. KC Venugopal, the Congress general secretary in charge of the state, is accused of involvement in a sex scandal related to Kerala’s solar scam. Instead of of focusing on poll preparations, the party is fending off suggestions that Venugopal, whose name figured in the letter written by the accused, Saritha Nair, and was part of the Justice G Sivarajan panel report tabled in the Kerala Assembly recently, is a tainted leader. Karnataka Congress chief G Parameshwara said Venugopal had already denied the charge in this four-and-a-half-year- old case. “This is clearly a political gimmick by the BJP,” he said, adding the report itself had been questioned and Nair had not raised the issue after the Kerala HC rejected her demand for a CBI probe. The Sivarajan Commission has indicted former Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy along with his staff in the multi-crore solar panel scam for having ‘assisted’ Nair in ‘cheating’ customers. Leaders of the Karnataka Congress are understandably irked that the shadow of this scam should fall on their poll chances because the party’s Central leadership has backed Venugopal so strongly.</p>
<p><strong>Kapil Sibal's backflip on poll symbols</strong></p>
<p><img alt="Kapil Sibal's backflip on poll symbols" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="060b2e79-9b81-4687-8fc2-2361c683a291" src="http://www.openthemagazine.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Insider3_1.jpg" />While arguing for the bicycle poll symbol of the Samajwadi Party to be given to Akhilesh Yadav’s faction before the Election Commission (EC) prior to the UP Assembly election, the Congressman lawyer Kapil Sibal had cited a 1971 Supreme Court directive in the <em>Sadiq Ali vs Election Commission of India</em> case. Now, the same Sibal is arguing that this precedent cannot be the basis for denying the Janata Dal-United’s poll symbol to Sharad Yadav’s rump faction. The 1971 order on Sadiq Ali, who succeeded Nijalingappa as president of the Congress-O after Indira Gandhi split the party, was based on a test of numerical strength to ascertain majority support in both its legislative and organisational wings. The court upheld the validity of Section 15 of the Representation of People Act, 1951, that authorises the EC to decide on such disputes. In case of a split, the EC checks the support of each claimant among the party’s lawmakers and also officials, delegates and members of its apex body, which is done after examining its constitution and pre-split list of office bearers. It may consider affidavits filed by members specifying their allegience. With these guidelines so clear, it is curious that Sibal has rubbished the 1971 directive. The entire legislature wing and virtually every leader of the JD-U is with Nitish Kumar. The Bihar Chief Minister’s lawyer, Rakesh Dwivedi, told Sibal during the hearing, “Only a few days ago, it was in this very room that you, Mr Sibal, said the SP poll symbol should go to the Akhilesh Yadav faction based on the Sadiq Ali case directive since that was the only and soundest yardstick by law to decide which faction should be alloted the symbol. Now you are arguing the very opposite.” Emerson once called consistency ‘the virtue of an ass.’ Looks like Sibal may just have proved the contrary, at least in this case.</p>
<p><strong>A pyrrhic Congress gain</strong></p>
<p><img alt="A pyrrhic Congress gain" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="591419ee-5d06-4f2e-b2dd-0467d606a1e2" src="http://www.openthemagazine.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Insider4_1.jpg" />The Congress ‘gain’ of Alpesh Thakur, whose demand for the Gujarat Deputy Chief Minister’s chair as a price to support the BJP was rejected by Amit Shah, may well prove a windfall at the ballot box for the ruling party. An OBC leader, Thakur shared a stage with Rahul Gandhi recently and threw his weight behind the Congress, which celebrated this with much fanfare. But this may prove to be a millstone around the Congress neck. Thakur, now a star campaigner for it, is like a red rag to a clutch of other OBC leaders within the party, including Arjun Modvadia, Satish Gohil and Bharatsinh Solanki, since, unlike them, he has the ear of Rahul Gandhi. Thakur is also the reason the BJP is laughing all the way to the ballot box, since the Congress ‘gain’ is already proving positive for the saffron party. Shah knew that Thakur’s presence could put off a part of its Patidar support base, driving some of them towards Hardik Patel. The BJP, which maintains that Patel has been propped up covertly by the Congress, has not given any quarter to either leader, and there are signs it is set to reap the rewards of it while the Grand Old Party suffers OBC-Patel dissension.</p>
<img src="http://www.openthemagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/public%3A/Insider1_1.jpg?itok=6QCXaZGc" /><div>BY: PR Ramesh</div><div>Node Id: 23644</div>Thu, 16 Nov 2017 16:42:37 +0000vijayopen23644 at http://www.openthemagazine.comWhat Was Alok Verma’s Problem?http://www.openthemagazine.com/article/insider/what-was-alok-verma-s-problem
<p>Gujarat cadre IPS officer Rakesh Asthana’s recent elevation to the post of special director, Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), appears to have split India’s premier investigative agency down the middle. In a highly unusual move, CBI chief Alok Verma has taken an open stand against the decision. To drum up support for his position, Verma even collared sections of the ‘friendly’ media to plant stories that Chief Vigilance Commisioner KV Chowdary had vociferously opposed Asthana’s promotion at a meeting held before it happened. Obligingly, the media put out reports that the CVC as well as some CBI officials had invoked the integrity clause to point out that the Bureau itself was investigating Asthana in a case related to a raid by the CBI and ED on the Gujarat- based Sandesara business group and so a higher post for him would be inappropriate. The lawyer activist Prashant Bhushan promptly dubbed the move—announced by the Cabinet Committee on Appointments—‘illegal’ and said he would challenge it in court. This aided Verma’s campaign. What was going on? Given that Asthana has held the crucial post of additional director in charge of probes into key cases including that of Vijay Mallya and the AugustaWestland scam, CBI insiders and other sources say Verma’s overdrive is no surprise. Many CBI officials handling key cases have reportedly stopped responding to Verma’s instructions. So, whose game was Verma mischievously playing with his Operation Trounce Asthana?</p>
<p><strong>Adhia can smile again</strong></p>
<p><img alt="Adhia can smile again" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="6f292037-bf87-4fdd-9cd8-9896d081f939" src="http://www.openthemagazine.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Insider2_0.jpg" />Despite the literal meaning of his name, Revenue Secretary Hasmukh Adhia has had little to laugh about lately. He has been the fall guy for the innumerable problems in GST implementation. Adhia has been under pressure from his counterparts in other key ministries to urgently address critical taxation issues in each sector and address demands. The Commerce Ministry, for example, has wanted exemptions for exporters. Thankfully for Adhia, he can smile again. The pressure on him has eased after the Government took a decision some days back to restore most of the benefits under the drawback schemes taken away by the GST regime. The schemes were meant to reimburse taxes paid by exporters and confusion over this since the GST roll-out four months ago had become a big headache not just for the export sector but also the Commerce Ministry—and for Adhia. But the biggest beneficiary of revisions may be the ruling BJP in Gujarat. Exporters have been complaining the most about new duty drawback rates, claiming these had eroded their competitiveness, which was already hit hard by slow tax refunds turning their working capital scarce. This double whammy, they maintained, had given their global competitors an edge in export markets and resulted in poor performance. Given that a substantial part of Gujarati enterprise lies in the small and medium scale sector, with firms acting as suppliers to larger exporters, the relief was welcomed widely in the poll-bound state.</p>
<p><strong>Nothing’s for sure</strong></p>
<p>India’s public service broadcaster Prasar Bharati bid goodbye to its chairman and senior journalist A Surya Prakash recently at the end of his three-year term. When he was appointed as its head, Prakash was a senior fellow at the Vivekananda International Foundation, a right-leaning, New Delhi-based think tank. Prakash had asserted himself as an important voice of the Right in the media, was close to the powerful in the Government, and had probably also expected his association with the Foundation to hold him in good stead. Yet, it’s unclear whether he will get another full term in office. The possibility of an extension until a suitable replacement is found, though, isn’t ruled out. But the uncertainty over his job is a reminder that, notwithstanding how close to the corridors of power one is, nothing can be taken for granted in Narendra Modi’s Government.</p>
<p><strong>Gehlot versus Pilot</strong></p>
<p><img alt="Gehlot versus Pilot" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="6224b16c-4fa4-4ab7-b099-cbffff22aa67" src="http://www.openthemagazine.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Insider3_0.jpg" />Sachin Pilot’s perceived closeness to Rahul Gandhi has led many to see the former as a Congress chief ministerial probable for Rajasthan. The fact that young Pilot was Rahul’s chosen companion on his African safaris wasn’t lost on party leaders in either Sachin’s own camp or of former Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot. Pilot’s camp, however, seems displeased by Gehlot’s appointment as the Congress general secretary in charge of Gujarat, the home state of Prime Minister Narendra Modi where Assembly polls are due soon, that could give the party a big morale boost should the party perform well, especially with the next General Election now just a year-and-a-half away. The 66-year-old—who has twice held Rajasthan’s top political post—seems unlikely now to be contemplating retirement, which could pose a hurdle for Pilot’s political ascent. Young leaders such as Alpesh Thakur and Hardik Patel also seem comfortable parleying with Gehlot. Given all these factors, an improvement in Congress’ showing in the Gujarat elections could give Pilot more grief than it does the BJP. The older leader has decided to go on a state-wide tour pegged on Mahatma Gandhi and Savitribai Phule. The last time Gehlot did such a thing on his own, back in 2008 with the Mahatma as its theme, the Congress registered an electoral upswing in Rajasthan, coming in just short of simple majority. Under Pilot’s care, the Congress lost a recent bypoll in Dholpur, and Gehlot is unlikely to let him forget that in a hurry.</p>
<p><strong>Passing the Rathore test</strong></p>
<p><img alt="Passing the Rathore test" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="81353d46-03a1-4a3f-8401-85499dec30cf" src="http://www.openthemagazine.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Insider4_0.jpg" />When Rajvardhan Rathore was appointed Union Sports Minister, fellow sportspersons welcomed it. Here at last was a leader who would be sensitive to their concerns. But Rathore discovered he had touched off a controversy when he recently ordered the National Anti-Doping Agency to conduct dope tests on Indian cricketers in accordance with rules laid down by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). The test was to be conducted during all games played in the country. A clause in WADA regulations makes it mandatory for cricketers to make themselves available for tests at an hour’s notice, something Indian players have been trying to escape—with a tacit wink from BCCI. Other than this body, every cricket board, including ICC, has been following WADA rules. Rathore took the view that cricketers should not be allowed to duck the test. During his career as a professional shooter, Rathore underwent the test routinely, and he directed the BCCI to enforce it in the interest of clean cricket. No sooner had he ordered this, though, senior cricketers crawled out of the woodwork to demand exceptions for players. They also asked that the tests should not be ad hoc, disturbing players on their “hard earned vacations”, but only at the beginning and end of a series. It has done nothing to lower their reputation as the world’s most pampered sports stars.</p>
<img src="http://www.openthemagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/public%3A/Insider1_0.jpg?itok=lrBnCGUE" /><div>BY: PR Ramesh</div><div>Node Id: 23591</div>Thu, 02 Nov 2017 15:16:17 +0000vijayopen23591 at http://www.openthemagazine.comThe Nowhere Man as Lalu’s Only Optionhttp://www.openthemagazine.com/article/insider/the-nowhere-man-as-lalu-s-only-option
<p>Guess who thinks he is in an ideal position to benefit the most from all of RJD supremo Lalu Yadav’s problems in Bihar? No, we’re not talking of the state’s Chief Minister Nitish Kumar. The possibility that the Yadav chieftain and former state Chief Minister could soon land in jail—alongwith a family member or two—thanks to financial wrongdoings, could prove most beneficial to fellow clansman and former JD(U) President Sharad Yadav. Or so goes the speculation in non-RJD political circles.</p>
<p>As part of his plan to keep his supporters together and insulate them from poaching by the BJP, Lalu Yadav desperately needs a close ally to keep watch over the flock, someone who wouldn’t harbour designs of usurping his political legacy while he cools his heels in jail. With other party leaders already cut down to size to allow his sons Tejaswi and Tej Pratap to dominate the RJD, Lalu Yadav no longer trusts non- family netas who owe allegiance to the lantern symbol. Some of them are thought to be biding their time before switching over to Nitish Kumar’s JD(U). That could possibly leave the RJD chief with only one—and lousy—option: that of turning to Sharad Yadav, once an archrival and a man seen by many a socialist as a Grade A opportunist. The man’s reputation, Lalu is aware of. That he may actually have to consider the option only shows how bad things are turning out for him. Lalu’s son Tejaswi was grilled for a marathon nine hours by authorities this week for holding property and assets beyond his known sources of income. His daughter Misa Bharati and her husband have already been put to interrogation.</p>
<p>Sharad Yadav, sneered at by some as ‘the Solitary Reaper of politics’, seems to believe he can play the role of Lalu’s stand-in to perfection and is even said to be priming himself for the assignment. Being sounded out for it would be music to the ear’s of a man who was once rebuffed by both of north India’s top Yadav leaders—Mulayam Singh of UP being the other—when he sought to expand his influence from somnolent MP to regions where OBC politics was vibrant. He is currently a man without a party, a political base or following. He is now at risk of being exposed as the Nowhere Man that he actually is, despite all his chest-thumping and sabre-rattling against the BJP. Assuming leadership of Lalu’s massive Yadav following in Bihar is not a task he is up to, as he may discover. But word of his succession could be of help to him nonetheless. Sharad Yadav has been bargaining with the Congress over a Haryana seat for his son-in-law even as he tries to secure a political future for his son, and Lalu’s favour could give him the stature he needs for the brief period before reality hits.</p>
<p><strong>The Overlooked Bureaucrat</strong></p>
<p><img alt="The Overlooked Bureaucrat" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="5a7fb895-17f4-429d-8128-96e43fb617d7" src="http://www.openthemagazine.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Insider2.jpg" />The Narendra Modi regime has been finding post-retirement roles for its favourite bureaucrats. Rajiv Mehrishi was made CAG, former I&B secretary Sunil Arora was appointed Election Commission member, and sundry others have been accommodated on panels like the Central Vigilance Commission. But there appears a significant omission: that of Shaktikanta Das, whose name once topped the probables to replace Raghuram Rajan as RBI Governor. In mid-2016, the RSS- backed BJP MP Subramanian Swamy had attacked Das, then secretary of Economic Affairs, that there was a property case pending against Das for helping P Chidambaram ‘swallow prime locations in Mahabalipuram’ and that he should be sent back to Tamil Nadu to face the music. At the time, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley had rushed to defend both Das and CEA Arvind Subramanian, also on the list of RBI candidates then, warning that politicians should desist from attacking good bureaucrats.</p>
<p>Both the November 2016 demonetisaton and the July 2017 GST launch happened under the watch of Das, who has defended both moves. He also said the RBI, which did not cut its policy rate, had “enough justification” to lower it. In his first interview since retirement, he rebutted criticism by former Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha against demonetisation and GST. Das has been in sync with the Finance Ministry, which has also frowned at the RBI decision to keep unchanged its repo rate. “We need to disincentivise lazy banking. Banks cannot use NPAs as an excuse to shut off lending,” Das told a daily in October. Will those in power now put him back in the centre of action?</p>
<p><strong>Multibillion Dollar Blooper</strong></p>
<p><img alt="Multibillion Dollar Blooper" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="8a59254d-fb0f-4ce5-a1dc-fcd766e79437" src="http://www.openthemagazine.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Insider3.jpg" />Centrally set-up ‘think tanks’ should think first before sticking their foot in their mouth. It was a numbers blooper by NITI Aayog officials of the sort that the Government could ill afford at any time, least of all now. Coming from Amitabh Kant, the man who was the first to recognise God’s Own Country, the goof-up left many in the ruling establishment red-faced. On October 9th, Prime Minister Modi met with top oil-and-gas sector CEOs and global experts of the field. They included officials from Rosneft, BP, Reliance, Saudi Aramco, Exxon Mobil, Royal Dutch Shell, Vedanta, Wood Mackenzie, IHS Markit, Schlumberger, Halliburton, Xcoal, ONGC, Indian Oil, GAIL, Petronet LNG, Oil India, HPCL, Delonex Energy and International Gas Union, apart from the World Bank and International Energy Agency. The global Who’s Who of the energy sector had lined up to meet Modi and offer their inputs for an upcoming energy policy. So, when NITI Aayog’s CEO Amitabh Kant briefed the media on this development, all ears perked up. Kant cited a whopping figure for Saudi Arabia’s proposed investment in India. “Saudi Aramco wants to invest in energy security and supply and become India’s investment partner. It will invest $300 billion in the next 4-5 years,” Kant told reporters. He also said Rosneft had already invested $65 billion and was planning to step that up fivefold. When reporters asked if that meant the two together had promised investments of $600 billion odd, Aayog officials fell over themselves to assert that the total sum could be much higher as Exxon Mobil and Royal Dutch Shell were also looking for a stronger presence in India, thanks to the Centre’s energy sector push. Embarrassingly, it later turned out that some of the investment figures were the global plans of these oil majors. In any case, the numbers being thrown around were many multiples of the entire sum of FDI that has come into the country. When this was brought to Kant’s notice, he rushed to summon an information officer and retracted the numbers. But the blooper isn’t going to fade away too soon.</p>
<p><strong>Chief Minister Under Siege</strong></p>
<p>Okay, so this could go down as one of the biggest unsolved mysteries of contemporary Indian politics: how a chief minister of an eastern state managed to run a government all these years although he didn’t know the local language and often read out speeches in his mother tongue written in Roman alphabets. This CM was yanked straight of his comfort zone of fine wine and highfalutin tomes and dumped in the thick of the state’s politics two decades ago. Known as a man of few words and a tightly-knit circle of uppah-class intellectuals for friends, he grew more reclusive over his years in power, trusting very few and whittling down his list of acquaintances. Observers maintain that with every state election and a further reduced margin of victory, the CM became increasingly nervous, even as the BJP, once an ally but now a rival, began snapping at his heels, Recently, a rumour ran across political circles that another of his high- profile MPs was bending the BJP way. Reason enough to be antsy. Little wonder the CM was seen gulping down peg after peg of an alcoholic drink and puffing furiously away at cigarettes at a party held recently in the Capital, to which he was a key invitee. Happens, when you know you’ve reached a political plateau and there’s no way to go but down.</p>
<p><strong>The Curious Case of An Appointment</strong></p>
<p><img alt="The Curious Case of An Appointment" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="7dc266f4-c342-4f21-9ff3-8a275430693f" src="http://www.openthemagazine.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Insider4.jpg" />There was relief in the Sashastra Seema Bal when its chief Archana Ramasundaram retired on September 30th, with Rajnikant Mishra taking over. She had few admirers in the force. The uncharitable say this was because of her unhappiness about being passed over as CBI chief. Ramasundaram was a DGP with the Tamil Nadu Police when she was first spotted for her efficiency by the CVC and was the senior-most officer recommended for the post of additional director at the CBI. However, she was suspended by the Tamil Nadu government for obeying a Government of India order and taking up that post; it was alleged that she had joined without a clearance from the Jayalalithaa government. She had met the former Chief Minister twice before moving to the CBI, but her relieving orders did not come in time. Once she joined the CBI, though, her suspension order was issued that very evening.</p>
<p>Curiously enough, other than hers, the CVC had recommended only one name for the post, instead of the three names demanded under the rules. This, despite the DoP having suggested five names. The UPA Cabinet Appointments Committee had ignored the suggestions and elevated Ramasundaram to the CBI post. That led to a petition filed in the apex court against her CBI appointment. The court restrained her from duty, without commenton her competence, at the time. The CBI appointment had been a millstone around her neck all this while.</p>
<img src="http://www.openthemagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/public%3A/Insider1.jpg?itok=dJO2Lqoj" /><div>BY: PR Ramesh</div><div>Node Id: 23507</div>Thu, 12 Oct 2017 14:25:54 +0000vijayopen23507 at http://www.openthemagazine.comThe Curious Case of an Explosive Diaryhttp://www.openthemagazine.com/article/insider/the-curious-case-of-an-explosive-diary
<p>Diaries, like organisers, are much sought after, usually at the end of the year. There is this curious but explosive case of a diary from yesteryears as the most potent political weapon in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s poll-bound home state of Gujarat, even as a big political battle brews at the hustings this year- end. Diary 2011, as it is known among the authorities, is likely to be the key to wresting the psychological advantage in Gujarat and thus build up a massive electoral momentum. The information it contains on I-T evasions and bribery at the highest levels in the state are considered explosive.</p>
<p>Diary 2011 could well be a Dussehra gift to the party leadership. It is on the basis of an FIR registered by the CBI on August 30th, 2017, and names the son- in-law of a well-known Congress leader in the state for having subverted the scrutiny of the Income Tax Department by oiling the palms of I-T officials. The diary and the FIR, likely to become the most hard-hitting weapons in the impending Assembly elections, name a close relative of the top Congress leader for having bribed I-T officials in order to ‘hush up the raids and huge money trail data’ seized from the offices of Sterling Biotech and the Sandesara Group of Companies. It is the worst-kept secret in Gujarat that brothers Nitin and Chetan Sandesara have close ties with the Congress leader from Gujarat whose proximity to party chief Sonia Gandhi is well known.</p>
<p>The Sandesara brothers and their company, apart from I-T officials Sunil Kumar Ojha, Dr Subhash Chandra and Manas Shankar Ray (all IRS), are prominently named in the FIR as the accused under the Prevention of Corruption Act. Page 11 of the FIR registered by the CBI’s Anti Corruption Unit in Delhi states that top I-T officers raided the premises of Sterling Biotech and the Sandesara Group of Companies in Vadodara, Mumbai and Ooty in June, 2011, and found ‘incriminating evidence of tax evasion and several diaries of political, bureaucracy and top police officials’ who received payoffs and later ‘hushed up’ the case against the companies after accepting bribes from the companies’ promoters. The FIR accuses these officers and other ‘unknown persons’ of covering up the gargantuan tax evasion this way. According to the FIR, the diary, seized from the Vadodara offices of the companies, showed entries of cash deposits amounting to Rs 75 lakh, paid to Chandra and ‘a further sum of Rs 1 crore from another person, Mr Irfan Bhai in cash, which is also mentioned and added to the total receipts.’ More entries in the six-year-old diary show ‘a further payment’ of Rs 1.75 crore under the subhead ‘Vadodara’, paid to Shokeen Properties, ostensibly to their farmhouse address in Delhi. The diary lists a sum of Rs 30 lakh as having been paid on April 2nd, 2011, to Gagan Dhawan by Chandra, to be paid to Shokeen Properties Pvt Ltd.</p>
<p>Diary 2011’s biggest haul could be the unearthing of an intricate network of ‘friendly’ officials in the political fraternity, bureaucracy and the police, used regularly by Sterling Biotech and the Sandesara Group of Companies to evade taxes. The diary was maintained meticulously by Ajay Panchal and the list of ‘friendlies’ was apparently passed on by Gagan Dhawan to the proprietors of Shokeen Properties. Panchal, who should have been questioned to ferret out information on the covert network of ‘friendlies’, appeared to have been wantonly brushed to the margins, according to the CBI. As whispers begin to get louder about attempts to paper over some top names in Diary 2011 in the context of bribery, pressure has begun to mount on the CBI, which has sent summons for the interrogation of some of the individuals named in it. As the year heads winter- ward, there is little doubt that Diary 2011 will set afire the political scenario in Gujarat.</p>
<p><strong>The brotherhood of Andhra politics</strong></p>
<p>Politicos often gang up in a splendid display of parochialism when they sense an external attack on one of their own. It wasn’t any different with the Andhra politicians who stood up for Prasanna Suryadevara. He is no high-ranking official—he was with the All India Radio and used his connections in the Left parties to get a posting as press advisor to the Speaker when Somnath Chatterjee occupied the post. The man then found a new benefactor: Arvind Kejriwal. Without obtaining necessary clearances, he managed to be appointed as Secretary of the Delhi Assembly. Following complaints against him, a probe was ordered by the I&B Ministry. Turns out he’s signed articles in the media against Modi and the NDA government. But that didn’t deter the BJP and TDP heavyweights from joining hands and demand a clean chit for Suryadevara. Last heard: they didn’t succeed in their attempts.</p>
<p><strong>Reward for honesty</strong></p>
<p><img alt="Reward for honesty" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="f9f2aa01-33f9-4b15-9b48-ecba56892c47" src="http://www.openthemagazine.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Insider1a.jpg" />Loyalty pays, but honesty pays more. Or it should, when all is said and done. Right? So, is the Modi Government—in the last two years of its tenure before the 2019 General Election— showing signs that it may be finally inclined to reward those who battled the vendetta politics of the UPA and stood up for fairness? Hope has begun to spring in the hearts of the legions that stood upright at the time, with the recent appointment of former CBI chief RK Raghavan as India’s High Commissioner to Cyprus. Known for his impeccable service record, Raghavan was picked by the Supreme Court as chief of the SIT, and the Modi Government, refusing to be swayed by pressure from the secular lobby, went ahead with his current appointment. As the CBI director between January 1999 and April 2001, Raghavan investigated the Priyadarshini Mattoo murder case, the 2000 South Africa cricket match fixing case and the 2002 Gujarat riots. He was assisted on the Gujarat riots by former CBI DIG and lawyer, R S Jamuwar. Both were outsiders to Gujarat. In April 2014, the SC praised Raghavan’s work as head of the SIT and refused to constitute another one. Naturally, both Modi and BJP President Amit Shah are taken by his honesty and refusal to buckle under political pressure of India’s ruling party leadership at the time. Word is that it could well be payback time from the duo for others of Raghavan’s ilk. Positive payback, of course.</p>
<p><strong>A farewell, not just yet</strong></p>
<p><img alt="A farewell, not just yet" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="99addb7f-b183-4805-b45d-4cbae3ae2d0f" src="http://www.openthemagazine.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Insider1b.jpg" />Rajiv Mehrishi was in the Finance Ministry before he became Home Secretary. When his tenure came to an end, the Rajasthan cadre bureaucrat was all packed and ready to board the next flight to Jaipur. His colleagues had organised a farewell function for him in the conference hall of the Ministry when news came that he had been appointed Home Secretary for a fixed tenure of two years. He unpacked. It happened again recently when he was through with his stint as Home Secretary and had packed his bags for Jaipur. His two years at the Home Ministry were up. But just as he was through with his goodbyes to his colleagues, the Modi Government announced his appointment as the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) after previous CAG, Shashi Kant Sharma, demitted office. He had taken over as CAG in May 2013 and was Defence Secretary before that appointment. Mehrishi, who will serve until August 7th, 2020, as CAG, was administered his oath of secrecy by President Ram Nath Kovind at a function in Rashtrapati Bhavan, attended by both Vice President Venkaiah Naidu and Prime Minister Modi, among other dignitaries.</p>
<p><strong>Chidambaram’s double jeopardy</strong></p>
<p><img alt="Chidambaram’s double jeopardy" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="fe37e072-df56-4a5c-b219-f226a3047de1" src="http://www.openthemagazine.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Insider1c.jpg" />Double jeopardy is a game that can be played from both ends. At least that’s the lesson that former Finance Minister P Chidambaram, who prides himself on being a capable advocate, was taught by Shantanu Sen, a former Joint Director of the CBI who was recently involved in the Aircel-Maxis case, in which the former’s son Karti Chidambaram could face prosecution. Chidambaram argued that since all cases against the Maran brothers were dismissed by a special CBI court, all investigations to prosecute Karti in connection with the case were a result of vendetta and an attempt to intimidate him into silence. In a series of press statements last month, Chidambaram argued that the probe against Karti was a violation of rules and maintained that nobody could be tried twice for the same offence. Sen, though, retorted that since there was no acquittal in the case, the double jeopardy argument fails to hold. The order of the trial court to quash proceedings against some of the accused did not preclude or exhaust the possibility of others being tried for the same offence, he pointed out. <em>Touché</em> ! A hit, Mr Chidambaram. A very palpable hit, you will admit.</p>
<img src="http://www.openthemagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/public%3A/Indsider1.jpg?itok=KCGACGbJ" /><div>BY: PR Ramesh</div><div>Node Id: 23458</div>Thu, 28 Sep 2017 12:27:36 +0000vijayopen23458 at http://www.openthemagazine.com